Ashland man admits raping his children, sentenced to minimum of 20 years

Published: June 3, 2014 2:43 PM

An Ashland man has been sentenced to 20 years to life in prison after admitting he raped two of his own biological children.

William T. Briggs, 28, formerly of the 200 block of Pleasant St., withdrew his not-guilty pleas Tuesday and pleaded guilty to two counts of rape, which is a first-degree felony.

The criminal complaint was filed by the Ashland Police Department on April 28, and an indictment by grand jury was later filed May 30.

According to both documents, Briggs engaged in the rape of his 7-year-old son and 5-year-old daughter over a period from the beginning of 2011 to April 2014. The offenses also occurred while Briggs and his children lived in Zanesville during the same period, according to Tuesday's court proceedings.

Briggs was arrested on April 25.

After pleading guilty to both charges, Briggs was sentenced to a prison term of 10 years to life for each count. He'll be incarcerated for a minimum of 20 years.

For the complete version of this story, see Wednesday's edition of the Times-Gazette.